All-time hits record in sight

Following last weekend’s games against Princeton, Penn senior Dan Williams stood four hits away from breaking the program’s all-time hits record.

And he didn’t even know it.

“To be honest, I didn’t know about it until last Sunday,” Williams said. “My dad’s up on those kinds of things, and he told other people in the family, but they were supposed to keep it a secret, so they wouldn’t jinx it.”

After his two-hit performance in the Quakers’ loss to Lehigh Wednesday, Williams raised his hit count to 192, just two shy of former captain Nick Italiano’s mark from 2003.

But Williams and Italiano couldn’t have had more contrasting situations. While those close to Williams were attempting to keep him in the dark, Italiano’s teammates made him far too aware of the stakes.

“They seemed to be counting down as the hits came, but I just wanted to get on base and drive in runs,” Italiano wrote in an email.

Though the circumstances were different for both players, they agreed that their focus remained on winning as a team.

“Getting the hits was closely tied with our success as a team, so my focus was the same as always,” Italiano wrote.

Williams understands that at this point in the season, each game is a must-have.

“Knowing that we’re in the hunt [for the Ivy title] and that every hit counts, it’s cool to be chasing the record,” Williams said.

Williams will attempt to break the mark this weekend when Penn (16-16, 7-5 Ivy) takes on Cornell (6-26, 3-9) in a four-game series in Ithaca, N.Y. The pair of doubleheaders represent a prime chance to cut into Princeton’s two-game Gehrig Division lead, which the Tigers built by taking three of four from the Quakers last weekend.

“We know that Cornell’s struggling, and everybody has been saying this week that we need a sweep,” Williams said. “Going from playing Princeton last weekend to Cornell, I’m a little worried we’re going to come out flat.”

Eight games remain for both Penn and Princeton. But while the pressure is on the Quakers, it doesn’t trouble Williams, who is also two outings shy of playing the most games in program history.

“You play baseball to have fun, and there’s nothing more fun than being in the hunt at the end of the season,” Williams said. “Of course, we’d rather be at the top of the standings than trying to climb our way back, but it’s still great to even have the opportunity.”

Though Italiano experienced much success in the game, peaking in his two years playing minor-league ball in the Phillies’ farm system, the former second basemen never won an Ivy League title.

“My father always told me that ‘records are written in pencil, but championships are written in indelible ink,’” he said.

This weekend, Williams will have a chance to move his name above Italiano’s in the record books and climb closer to the Tigers in the standings and toward the championship game.

Knock on wood.

This article has been updated from its original version to reflect that Williams has 192 hits and the record is 194, not 190 and 192, respectively.

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